Man dies after A&E sent him home and ‘told him to drink Lucozade’ despite vomiting 100 times
A man who was sent home from a hospital and 'told to drink Lucozade' by doctors tragically died after vomiting 100 times in 24 hours
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A man who was sent home from a hospital and “told to drink Lucozade” by doctors tragically died after vomiting 100 times in 24 hours.
Doctors at Milton Keynes Hospital failed to diagnose Nick Rousseau with a blocked bowel in 2019.
His "devastated" wife Kimberly White said he was sent home twice in three days and told he “would be alright” as doctors believed he had gastroenteritis.
However, Rousseau was actually suffering from an ischaemic bowel - a condition which blocks the arteries to the bowel.
Nick's wife Kimberly White said he was sent home twice in three days and told he 'would be alright' as doctors believed he had gastroenteritis
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Despite seeing his doctor several times, he lost three stones in weight over two years due to vomiting and diarrhoea.
Following his death, his family were awarded a six-figure payout in June from Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
The trust did not admit negligence, but accepted that there were parts of Rousseau’s illness which could have justified admission, inpatient observation and further tests.
White found her husband “lying in agony” on the floor before he was taken to hospital in April 2019.
A month later, he was “misdiagnosed” with thrush of the stomach, a statement from law firm Osbornes Law said.
He was in “excruciating pain” by September 2019 and was taken to A&E by ambulance but sent home.
The next day, he returned again but was told to go home.
On October 8, 2019, White came home to find her husband lying dead in the bathroom in a pool of blood.
“It was horrific to see how much pain Nick was in over those last few days, but the doctors kept on saying that he would be fine if he went home and drank Lucozade," she told The Independent.
“It makes me really angry that the trust has never taken responsibility for what happened to Nick or apologised to me. That is all I have ever wanted from this. If I get that then I will feel like I have done everything I possibly could for Nick.”
She added: “I can still hear the sound of my scream when I found him. I know people talk about a broken heart, but my heart physically hurts. My life was ripped to shreds in that moment and everything changed… the whole episode has left me with PTSD.”
During an inquest, coroner Sean Cummings raised concerns about Rousseau’s A&E care after a doctor did not carry out two blood tests before he was discharged.
During an inquest, coroner Sean Cummings raised concerns about Rousseau’s A&E care after a doctor did not carry out two blood tests before he was discharged
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Cummings said he was concerned about the consultant’s decision to not carry out a second lactate test - which is used to spot sepsis - despite his blood showing high levels of the acid and clinical guidance requiring a second test.
“The disregarding of the NICE guidelines simply because it is inconvenient is disturbing,” he said.
The trust responded saying the second test would not have prevented Rousseau’s death.
Dr Ian Reckless, the trust’s medical director, said: “I am deeply sorry for the loss and pain Ms White has endured on account of Mr Rousseau’s death.
"The circumstances of Mr Rousseau’s death – at home having presented twice to hospital in recent days – were unexpected and harrowing for family members.
“Whilst Mr Rousseau presented to hospital with a rare condition which is notoriously difficult to diagnose, we accept that there were features of his illness which could have justified admission, inpatient observation, and further tests.
"In those circumstances, it is possible that a definitive diagnosis could have been made and treatments attempted.”